|
|
| By Joe Fusco, d3photography.com; By Mark Brown, UST athletics |
It was a repeat and a newcomer getting the top individual awards in the West Region for D3football.com. Linfield quarterback Sam Riddle was named 2016 West Region Offensive Player of the Year, his second consecutive regional honor, while St. Thomas cornerback Michael Alada, a first-year starter, was named West Region Defensive Player of the Year.
Coe coach Tyler Staker, who took over the head coaching role from his father, longtime coach Steve Staker, was named D3football.com West Region Coach of the Year. The Kohawks improved from 4-6 in 2015 to 11-1 this season, including a trip to the second round of the playoffs.
Riddle, a senior, led the Wildcats to the second round of the NCAA Division III playoffs before running into No. 1 Mary Hardin-Baylor. He completed 64.9 percent of his passes, throwing for 3,317 yards and 32 touchdowns in 11 games, against 13 interceptions. Riddle also ran for 263 yards and three scores.
Alada made his last season in a Tommies uniform count, finishing with 11 interceptions in the 13 games for St. Thomas, which finished its season 12-1 with a loss to UW-Oshkosh in the national quarterfinals. Alada also had a fumble recovery and seven additional pass breakups to go along with 34 tackles, 29 solo.
The teams, selected in balloting by West Region sports information directors and D3football.com staff, were chosen from 260 nominations by Division III member schools. A total of 77 players were chosen. Players nominated for All-Region are eligible to be considered for D3football.com All-America honors, which will be announced the evening of Dec. 16, in D3football.com’s pregame coverage for Stagg Bowl XLIV.
D3football.com 2016 All-West Region Team
Offensive Player of the Year: Sam Riddle, QB, Linfield
Defensive Player of the Year: Michael Alada, CB, St. Thomas
Coach of the Year: Tyler Staker, Coe
| First Team Offense | ||||
| Pos. | Player | School | Yr. | Hometown |
| QB | Sam Riddle | Linfield | Sr. | Hillsboro, Ore. |
| RB | Trevor Heitland | Coe | Sr. | Cedar Rapids, Iowa |
| RB | Joey Valdivia | Lake Forest | Sr. | Grayslake, Ill. |
| WR | Dan Arnold | UW-Platteville | Sr. | Fargo, N.D. |
| WR | Sam Markham | Central | Sr. | Atlantic, Iowa |
| TE | Drew Neuville | Bethel | Sr. | Green Bay, Wis. |
| T | Will Hilbert | St. Thomas | Sr. | Mequon, Wis. |
| G | Kolton Koch | Monmouth | Sr. | Chebanse, Ill. |
| C | Nate Trewyn | UW-Whitewater | So. | Janesville, Wis. |
| G | Stephen Nnabue | Linfield | Sr. | Issaquah, Wash. |
| T | Tony Koepnick | UW-Whitewater | Sr. | Sussex, Wis. |
| K | Drew Pearson | UW-Stout | So. | Wausau, Wis. |
| RET | Alex Pasiewicz | Lake Forest | Sr. | Zion, Ill. |
| First Team Defense | ||||
| DE | Nathan Brinker | St. John’s | So. | Avon, Minn. |
| DT | Brandon Tamsett | UW-Whitewater | Sr. | Waterford, Wis. |
| DT | Ryan Winter | St. Thomas | Sr. | Woodbury, Minn. |
| DE | Isaac Frazier | Simpson | Sr. | Marion, Iowa |
| LB | Jack Perez | Pacific | Sr. | Petaluma, Calif. |
| LB | Reese Dziedzic | UW-Oshkosh | Sr. | Crystal Lake, Ill. |
| LB | Jesse Addo | St. Thomas | Sr. | Plymouth, Minn. |
| CB | Michael Alada | St. Thomas | Sr. | St. Paul, Minn. |
| S | Ryan Grandlic | St. Norbert | Sr. | Glenbeulah, Wis. |
| S | Johnny Eagan | UW-Oshkosh | Sr. | Wautoma, Wis. |
| CB | Dylan Stepleton | Coe | Sr. | Tipton, Iowa |
| P | Elias Deeb | Chapman | Fr. | Newport Beach, Calif. |
| ST | R.J. Pompey | Lake Forest | Jr. | Gurnee, Ill. |
| Second Team Offense | ||||
| QB | Ian Kolste | Whitworth | Jr. | Oak Harbor, Wash. |
| RB | Chazz Middlebrook | MacMurray | So. | Jacksonville, Ill. |
| RB | Dallas Parent | La Verne | Sr. | Fullerton, Calif. |
| WR | Kobe Williams | Pacific | Fr. | Las Vegas, Nev. |
| WR | Najee Toomer | Dubuque | Sr. | Maywood, Ill. |
| TE | Brent Campbell | UW-Whitewater | Sr. | Rockford, Ill. |
| T | Vincent Basile | UW-Oshkosh | Sr. | Racine, Wis. |
| G | Cole Tanner | Central | Sr. | Greenfield, Iowa |
| C | Ben Eli | St. John’s | Sr. | Avon, Minn. |
| G | Austin Jones | UW-Whitewater | Sr. | Madison, Wis. |
| T | Josh Berg | Concordia-Moorhead | Sr. | Moorhead, Minn. |
| K | Tyler Stolen | Buena Vista | Sr. | Sioux City, Iowa |
| RET | Zack Martinelli | Central | Sr. | Elburn, Ill. |
| Second Team Defense | ||||
| DE | Jeff Bajema | Pacific | Sr. | Burlington, Wash. |
| DT | Peyton Thiry | St. John’s | Sr. | Lester Prairie, Minn. |
| DT | Nick Egersdorf | Macalester | Sr. | Rochester, Minn. |
| DE | John Flood | UW-Whitewater | Sr. | Spring Grove, Ill. |
| LB | Carter Hanson | St. John’s | Sr. | Blue Earth, Minn. |
| LB | Alex Berg | Concordia-Moorhead | So. | Moorhead, Minn. |
| LB | Jack Pietruszewski | St. John’s | Sr. | South St. Paul, Minn. |
| CB | Vince Mason | UW-Whitewater | Sr. | Green Bay, Wis. |
| S | Jacob Wuesthoff | Puget Sound | Sr. | Newbury Park, Calif. |
| S | Zach Matter | Central | Sr. | Ankeny, Iowa |
| CB | Kennedy Johnson | Linfield | Sr. | Gresham, Ore. |
| P | Jake Pisarik | Wartburg | Jr. | Mount Vernon, Iowa |
| Third Team Offense | ||||
| QB | Tom Kelly | UW-Platteville | Sr. | Chicago, Ill. |
| RB | Duke DeGaetano | Whitworth | Sr. | Bend, Ore. |
| RB | Drew Patterson | UW-Whitewater | So. | Sussex, Wis. |
| WR | Evan Clark | St. John’s | Sr. | Phoenix, Ariz. |
| WR | Aaron Olson | St. Scholastica | So. | Esko, Minn. |
| TE | Jackson Hull | St. Thomas | Jr. | Mahtomedi, Minn. |
| T | Brett Jerdee | UW-Platteville | Sr. | Mount Horeb, Wis. |
| G | Patrick Cusick | Dubuque | Sr. | Davis Junction, Ill. |
| C | Colton Coss | Pomona-Pitzer | Sr. | Henderson, Nev. |
| G | Nolan Schuler | George Fox | Jr. | Bakersfield, Calif. |
| T | Kane'ala Atchison-Keolanui | UW-Stout | Sr. | Lodi, Wis. |
| T | Dalton Kuehl | Coe | So. | Cedar Rapids, Iowa |
| K | Eli Wettstein | UW-Oshkosh | So. | De Pere, Wis. |
| RET | Jordan Pride | Whitworth | Sr. | Oakland, Calif. |
| Third Team Defense | ||||
| DE | Thomas Lesniewski | Monmouth | So. | Algonquin, Ill. |
| DT | DeJon Rothschild | Cal Lutheran | Sr. | Banning, Calif. |
| DE | Trever Zeibert | Eureka | Jr. | Monee, Ill. |
| LB | Matt Barnes | Monmouth | Sr. | Colfax, Ill. |
| LB | Mitch Shepherd | Redlands | Jr. | Seattle, Wash. |
| LB | Calvin Harridge | Loras | Sr. | Morrison, Ill. |
| LB | Matt Seitz | UW-Whitewater | Jr. | Hartland, Wis. |
| CB | Victor Bunce | Claremont-M-S | Jr. | El Dorado Hills, Calif. |
| S | Riley Shoemaker | Nebraska Wesleyan | Sr. | Grand Island, Neb. |
| S | Kenneth Jinkins | St. Scholastica | Jr. | Eagan, Minn. |
| CB | Zach Schwalbach | Hamline | Sr. | Stewartville, Minn. |
| P | Clark Riedel | UW-Stout | Jr. | Waukesha, Wis. |